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PlayStreets Chicago

PlayStreets in¬†Chicago is a collaborative initiative for healthier and stronger communities by creating safe and accessible residential play areas for kids to be active, to learn, and for neighbors to come together. A grant program from the Chicago Department of Public Health supports community-based organizations to provide local leadership in the development of PlayStreets in targeted community areas. A permit program allows residents to establish short-term traffic restrictions on their streets to use as pop-up recreation spaces.

Healthy Chicago 2.0 PlayStreets Grants

Since 2012, the Chicago Department of Public Health has issued summer implementation grants and offered technical support to various community-based organizations for the development of PlayStreets in targeted community areas. These grants serve as one of several strategies CDPH leads as part of Healthy Chicago 2.0, a plan to advance health equity across Chicago’s neighborhoods by bridging service gaps and looking at root causes for disparities in health outcomes.

Implementing community-based organizations will help organize residents to create safe, accessible environments where youth and families can be physically active, learn, create, come together, and have fun.¬†CDPH’s annual grants are expected to sponsor and create more than 150 such PlayStreets activations over the summer months through more than two dozen community-based organizations. Find a calendar of sponsored activations for the summer of 2018¬†below:

Technical Support Regions

If you would like to learn more details about how PlayStreets is being implemented in your area or to get involved with a specific activation, review this map¬†to determine your technical support region and connect with the¬†appropriate facilitating agency as directed below.

North & West Region

Facilitated by Gads Hill Centers, the North & West Region is defined as community Areas 1-32, 76, and 77 or those north of the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal and Interstate 55.¬†Contact Gabriela at playstreets@gadshillcenter.org or 312-226-0963×291¬†for more information about joining PlayStreets efforts¬†in your North & West Region community.

Facilitated by World Sport Chicago, the South Region is defined as community areas 33-75 or those south of¬†the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal and Interstate 55. Contact Kelly at krutherford@worldsportchicago.org or 312-861-4941 for more information about joining PlayStreets efforts in your South Region community.

PlayStreets in Action

World Sport Chicago supports resiliency and strengthens community by increasing access to youth sport in Chicago. Our work is targeted to reach neighborhoods where the barriers to access sport through traditional avenues are most severe and is made possible through the contributions of donors and volunteers.